Rune Talk: Nauthiz – Need-Fire

Today’s rune talk will be short and sweet due to a real lack of energy and falling asleep at the keyboard lol.

So anyway, today we’ll be talking about Nauthiz and its role as a rune of the 24 Elder Futhark. Most of you already know this, but there are those new to our ways who are becoming fans of HOTW/TWP and so I do this for them.

Nauthiz’ name literally translates to ‘Need-Fire’ or ‘Necessity’. Semantically, it looks almost like two sticks crossing to strike a fire, maybe this is the element behind it, who knows. It represents doing what needs to be done, putting in work and reaping the rewards of those efforts.

I am told that this rune is able to aid in manipulation of the wyrd, but I am unawares of how to go about doing this myself yet. I learn alot about the runes when I post them for you guys and gals.

It also tells us we are beginning to recognise our own personal need and how to go about dealing with it or obtaining it, as well as reliance.

If we look at the Rune Poems, we can find Nauthiz in the Old Norse rune poem, as we see below:

“Naudhr
Constraint gives scant choice;
a naked man is chilled by the frost.”

The above verse reinforces the ‘Need-Fire’ translation of Nauthiz as showing us that we don’t really have much of a choice to make, it is a need. If you’re naked, and cold.. in the frost, you need fire – or die of hypothermia. Alot of things in life are paraphrased like this, and sometimes we just need to get our heads down and get on with it.